African Champions League Final Return Leg To Be Played In Front Of Restricted Crowd

Sunday's African Champions League final in Tunis, Tunisia will have a restricted crowd of 35,000 due to "fears of stadium violence and civil unrest," according to Mark Gleeson of REUTERS. After the first leg in Cairo, Egypt ended 1-1, home side Esperance is "poised to take the title for a second successive year" in the second leg against Al Ahli of Egypt in the 65,000 seat Rades Stadium. After confining most professional football to be played behind closed doors over the last year, Tunisia's Interior Ministry has "granted permission for the selling of tickets" for more than half the capacity of the ground. Officials said that the Interior Ministry was planning to allow 27,000 tickets to be sold, but that number has been increased after complaints from the Confederation of African Football, keen to ensure its showpiece final, is "played against a backdrop of a noisy and excited crowd" (REUTERS, 11/12).